The Zoochat Photographic Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Europe

PLETHODONTIDAE


This family comprises approximately 478 species within 29 genera; of these, 8 species within a single genus occur in Europe as follows:

Speleomantes - European Cave Salamanders (8 species, all of which are found within Europe)
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Speleomantes


Ambrosi's Cave Salamander (Speleomantes ambrosii)

This species is restricted to a small region of eastern Liguria and immediately-adjacent northwest Tuscany, and is both nocturnal and strictly terrestrial, inhabiting caves and rocky crevices in and around humid, forested stream valleys.

Two subspecies are recognised:

S. a. ambrosii - occurs west of the La Magra River in Liguria.
S. a. bianchii - occurs east of the La Magra River in Liguria, and into Tuscany; may actually belong within S. italicus.

No photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Monte Albo Cave Salamander (Speleomantes flavus)

This species is endemic to the Monte Albo chains of northeast Sardinia, where it is primarily recorded from small caves and rocky crevices in karstic terrain, sometimes extending into surrounding open forest, humid stream valleys and man-made structures such as dry-stone walls. The species is strictly terrestrial, and classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Gene's Cave Salamander (Speleomantes genei)

This species is endemic to the Sulcis-Iglesiente region of southwest Sardinia, where it is primarily recorded from small caves and rocky crevices in karstic terrain, sometimes extending into surrounding open forest, humid stream valleys and man-made structures such as dry-stone walls. The species is strictly terrestrial, and is classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

Currently classified as monotypic; however, distinct northern and southern clades have been detected which display a similar level of genetic distinctiveness to other congenerics, and as such the current taxon may represent two species.

No photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Imperial Cave Salamander (Speleomantes imperialis)

This species is endemic to the provinces of Nuoro, Oristano and Cagliari in central and eastern Sardinia, where it occurs in a fragmented distribution throughout the karstic landscape of the region, and associated caves, rocky crevices and humid stream valleys. The species is strictly terrestrial and largely nocturnal.

Currently classified as monotypic; however, distinct northern and southern morphs have been detected which display morphological differences, the northern "imperialis" morph displaying significant dorsal blotching and vivid colouration, whilst the southern "funereus" morph is duller and tends to lack dorsal patterning.

No photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Italian Cave Salamander (Speleomantes italicus)

This species is endemic to the northern and central Appenines of Italy, and has been introduced to a small region of Lower Saxony in Germany; the species is strictly terrestrial and largely nocturnal, and tends to occupy caves and rocky crevices in and around humid, forested stream valleys.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Sette Fratelli Cave Salamander (Speleomantes sarrabusensis)

This species is endemic to Monte dei Sette Fratelli and surrounding regions of the extreme southeast of Sardinia, where it is restricted to granite boulder fields containing a variety of humid rocky outcrops, crevices, and forested areas. The species is strictly terrestrial, and there is some evidence that unlike its congeners it may be viviparous. Classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Strinati's Cave Salamander (Speleomantes strinatii)

This species occurs throughout the coastal northwest of Italy and adjacent southeast France and Monaco, as far east as the northern Apennines. The species is strictly terrestrial and largely nocturnal, and tends to inhabit rocky outcrops and caves in mountainous areas, along with associated forested streams.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Sopramonte Cave Salamander (Speleomantes supramontis)

This species is endemic to Monte Tuttavista and surrounding regions of east-central Sardinia, where it is largely found occupying humid rocky outcrops, limestone caves and crevices, and associated forested streams. The species is strictly terrestrial and largely nocturnal, and is classified as Endangered by the IUCN.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.
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HYNOBIIDAE


This family comprises approximately 81 species within 10 genera, of which a single species occurs within Europe as follows:

Salamandrella - Siberian Salamanders (2 species, of which one occurs within Europe)
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Salamandrella


Siberian Salamander (Salamandrella keyserlingii)

Within Europe, the range of this species is restricted to the westernmost edges of Siberia; elsewhere, the species extends throughout Siberia and the Russian Far East as far east as Kamchatka, and south into Mongolia, northeast China, North Korea and northernmost Japan. The species is terrestrial outside the brief breeding period, occupying barren taiga, open birch forest and swamp habitats, and tends to breed opportunistically in any available body of water, particularly flooded fields, ponds, lakes and ox-bow lakes.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.
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PROTEIDAE


This family comprises 6 species within 2 genera, of which a single species occurs within Europe as follows:

Proteus - Olm (monotypic)
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Proteus


Olm (Proteus anguinus)

This species is endemic to the network of subterranean caves and rivers within the karstic landscapes of the Dinarian Alps, from southern Slovenia and adjacent northeast Italy in the north to southern Croatia and northwest Montenegro in the south. Isolated introduced populations exist in the French Pyrenees, northeast Italy and the Harz of northern Germany. The species is neotenous and exclusively aquatic, although they may be capable of brief activity on land in order to travel short distances between bodies of water, and is extremely long-lived.

Two subspecies are recognised:

P. a. anguinus - occurs throughout the described range.
P.a. parkelj - restricted to the Bela Krajina region of southeast Slovenia

Photo by @Newzooboy (P. a. anguinus)

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Genus Salamandra (fire salamanders) is definitely underused in zoos. There are several very narrow-range, threatened forms, they are relatively large and very colorful, make excellent ambassador animals possible to carry e.g. to schools, illustrate several general problems of conservation (water pollution, forest destruction, acidification, invasive species). And have interesting biology, for example longevity, multi-year pregnancies and evolution of warning coloration.

And, generally, it looks like most European conservationists grew up from children which kept newts in jam jars.
 
ALYTIDAE


This family comprises 5 species within a single genus, of which 4 are present within Europe as follows:

Alytes - Midwife Toads (5 species, of which 4 are present within Europe)
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Alytes


Iberian Midwife Toad (Alytes cisternasii)

This species occurs throughout the central and southwest Iberian Peninsula, from as far north as west-central Castille and Leon and as far east as Madrid, Montes de Toledo and the easternmost Sierra Morena, to southern Portugal and adjacent western Andalusia in the southwest. The species tends to occur in dry, warm areas with a blend of loose soil and sandy, stony substrate, often in lowland agricultural areas or - towards the Sistema Central - more hilly terrain. The species is primarily terrestrial and almost entirely nocturnal, but seldom strays far from breeding sites; these tend to comprise wells and the stagnant margins of rivers and streams.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Betic Midwife Toad (Alytes dickhilleni)

This species is restricted to the mountains of southeast Spain, from the Sierra de Alcaraz in the north to the Sierra Nevada in the south, and primarily occupies steep slopes within pine or oak forests, occasionally extending into barren rocky areas at higher altitudes; the species seldom occurs far from breeding sites, which are usually fast-flowing rivers and streams or man-made structures such as wells. The species is classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN due to the highly-fragmented nature of most populations, the loss of breeding sites and chytridiomycosis.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Mallorcan Midwife Toad (Alytes muletensis)

This species is restricted to the eastern Sierra Tramuntana of northwest Mallorca in the Balearic Islands and is somewhat more tied to aquatic habitats when compared to congeners, being confined to deep narrow ravines carved by streams flowing through the limestone mountains; these streams often reduce to isolated stagnant pools in summer, at which time they serve as breeding waters. The species is classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN due to the low number of breeding sites and chytridiomycosis; the successful captive breeding and reintroduction programme for the species is currently on hiatus due to the inadvertent introduction of chytrid into the wild population through individuals bred at Jersey Zoo.

Monotypic.

Photo by @gentle lemur

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Common Midwife Toad (Alytes obstetricans)

This species extends throughout much of western and southwest Europe, from Belgium, the extreme south of Netherlands and central Germany in the north, through France and western Switzerland, and into the northern and central Iberian Peninsula in the south, extending as far south as central Portugal and Murcia. The species primarily inhabits rocky areas with loose soil, particularly in hilly and mountainous terrain, but is also recorded in lowland dunes and areas of human habitation; the species is nocturnal and largely terrestrial, but remains close to breeding waters including ponds, the stagnant margins of streams and rivers, and man-made flooded pits and quarries.

Four subspecies are recognised:

A. o. obstetricans - extends throughout the range outside the Iberian Peninsula, and also south into northern Spain, as far west as eastern Galicia.
A. o. almogavarii - extends throughout northeast Spain, Andorra and the adjacent extreme southeast of France, reaching as far south as the Catalan-Valencian border. Recent genetic studies strongly suggest that this taxon merits recognition as a distinct species.
A. o. boscai - extends throughout much of the western and central Iberian Peninsula, from Galicia in the north to central Portugal in the south, and east from here into the western Sistema Central and the Sierra de Gredos.
A. o. pertinax - extends throughout much of central and eastern Iberian Peninsula, from northeast Portugal in the west, through northern Castile and Leon into the Sistema Iberico of southern Aragon, to the mountains of Valencia in the east.

Photo by @MagpieGoose (A. o. obstetricans)

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Photo by @Kakapo (A. o. almogavarii)

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DISCOGLOSSIDAE


This family comprises 6 species within two genera, of which 4 species are present within Europe as follows:

Discoglossus - Painted Frogs (6 species, of which 5 are present within Europe)
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Discoglossus


Iberian Painted Frog (Discoglossus galganoi)

This species extends throughout much of the Iberian Peninsula, from northwest Spain in the north and southwest Portugal in the south, and east into central Spain as far as Madrid. Although capable of a terrestrial lifestyle outside the breeding season, the species is seldom found far from the breeding habitat; this generally takes the form of shallow bodies of water such as marshes, flooded farmland, mountain streams and stagnant rivers, usually within well-vegetated areas.

Monotypic, although the Spanish Painted Frog is often subsumed within the species as a distinct subspecies.

Photo by @Corby93

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Spanish Painted Frog (Discoglossus jeanneae)

This species extends patchily throughout eastern and southeast Spain; as with the Iberian Painted Frog the species is largely aquatic, although capable of a terrestrial lifestyle, and breeds opportunistically in both temporary and permanant bodies of water such as shallow ponds, streams, stagnant rivers and drainage ditches in agricultural land, generally located in areas with gypsum or limestone bedrock.

Monotypic, although the species is often subsumed into the Iberian Painted Frog as a distinct subspecies. No photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Corsican Painted Frog (Discoglossus montalentii)

This species is endemic to the montane central hub of Corsica; the species is largely aquatic, and strongly-associated with fast-flowing mountain streams and rapids located in high-altitude pristine woods and forests.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Painted Frog (Discoglossus pictus)

Within the region under discussion, the range of this species is restricted to Sicily, Malta and Gozo, with introduced populations present in Catalonia and adjacent southwest France; populations are also present throughout much of Algeria and Tunisia. The species is largely aquatic and an opportunistic breeder, being located in a wide range of habitats including flooded fields, marshes, drainage ditches, canals shallow pools and stagnant rivers, generally close to areas of dense vegetation.

Two subspecies are recognised, both of which occur in Europe:

D. p. pictus - endemic to Sicily, Malta and Gozo
D. p. auritus - introduced populations of this subspecies are present in Catalonia and southwest France.

Photo by @vogelcommando

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Tyrrhenian Painted Frog (Discoglossus sardus)

This species occurs throughout Corsica, Sardinia and smaller associated islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The species is largely aquatic, although capable of a terrestrial lifestyle, and occurs in a wide range of habitats in both open maquis and wooded areas. It breeds opportunistically in both temporary and permanent bodies of water such as shallow ponds, ditches, streams and stagnant rivers, generally in thickly-vegetated areas.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.
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BOMBINATORIDAE


This family comprises 8 species within two genera, of which three species are present in Europe as follows:

Bombina - Fire-bellied Toads (6 species, of which 3 are present in Europe)
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Bombina


Fire-bellied Toad (Bombina bombina)

This species occurs throughout central and eastern Europe, from northeast Germany and the Czech Republic in the west into western Russia in the east, and south into the northeast Balkans, with isolated disjunct populations in northern Denmark and adjacent southern Sweden; outside Europe, the species extends into the northern Caucasus and southwest Siberia. The species is largely aquatic, often leaving the water only to hibernate, and predominantly occurs in shallow lowland habitats such as stagnant lakes and ponds, ditches, swamps and flooded fields exposed to direct sunlight.

Monotypic.

Photo by @LaughingDove

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Appenine Yellow-bellied Toad (Bombina pachypus)

This species is endemic to Italy, from the Po Valley in the north, throughout the Apennines to the southern tip of Peninsular Italy. The species is largely aquatic and ranges throughout suitable habitat from sea level to approximately 1700 metres, predominantly breeding in shallow, unshaded pools, ditches and ponds in open forest and agricultural land. Classified as Endangered by the IUCN, due to habitat fragmentation and possible chytridiomycosis.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Yellow-bellied Toad (Bombina variegata)

This species occurs throughout much of continental Europe, from central France and southwest Germany in the west, through central and eastern Europe to central Romania and western Ukraine in the east, and south from here throughout the Balkans; populations in the west of this range are highly patchy and fragmented, with local extinctions having taken place throughout the Low Countries and much of northern France, and are largely absent from much of Hungary and adjacent regions of the northern Balkans. The species is largely aquatic, with breeding predominantly taking place in shallow, unshaded pools in mixed woodland, agricultural land and wetland; however the species is highly opportunistic and can be found in puddles, ditches, wheel ruts and other ephemeral bodies of water.

Two subspecies are recognised; however, Bombina pachypus is sometimes subsumed within this species as a third subspecies:

B. v. variegata - extends throughout western, central and eastern Europe, excluding much of the Balkans.
B. v. scabra - extends throughout the Balkan Peninsula, from southernmost Croatia, Bosnia and southwest Bulgaria in the north to the Isthmus of Corinth in the south.

Photo by @Macaw16 (B. v. variegata)

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PELOBATIDAE


This family comprises 5 species within a single genus, of which four species are present in Europe as follows:

Pelobates - Spadefoot Toads (5 species, of which four are present in Europe)
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Pelobates


Western Spadefoot Toad (Pelobates cultripes)

This species extends throughout the majority of the Iberian Peninsula, barring the Pyrenees and much of northern Spain, and extends through coastal Catalonia into the French Mediterranean coast; disjunct populations are present throughout the Atlantic coastline of southwest France. Outside the breeding season - during which time the species occurs in deep and well-vegetated bodies of water, and occasionally more temporary bodies of water - the species is heavily fossorial and inhabits open, sandy areas such as open pinewoods, coastal dunes and cultivated land.

Monotypic.

Photo by @Merintia

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Common Spadefoot Toad (Pelobates fuscus)

This species extends throughout much of Europe, from eastern Netherlands, western Germany and Denmark in the west to the Baltic States and adjacent western Russis in the east, and south from here throughout eastern Europe into the northern Balkans as far south as northern Serbia and Bulgaria; largely absent from the Carpathian Mountains. Disjunct populations occur in central France and the Po Valley of northern Italy. Outside the breeding season - during which time the species prefers to occupy deep, well-vegetated permanant bodies of water - the species is almost entirely nocturnal and fossorial and is largely confined to flat, open lowland areas with loose, dry soil such as heathland, dunes and steppes.

Monotypic, although the population in northern Italy has occasionally been suggested to represent a distinct subspecies, and populations now classified as P. vespertinus were once regarded as belonging to this species.

Photo by @vogelcommando

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Eastern Spadefoot Toad (Pelobates syriacus)

Within Europe, this species is patchily distributed throughout much of southeast Europe, from eastern Serbia and southern Romania in the north to the Peloponnesus of southern Greece in the south, and east into Thracian Turkey; the species extends beyond here in a highly-fragmented distribution throughout Asia Minor and the Middle East. The species is highly fossorial, preferring areas with loose, sandy soil such as dunes, estuaries and semi-steppes, but unlike its congeners it can also be found in rockier and less friable habitats. During the breeding season it tends to occur in deep but sparsely-vegetated bodies of water , but may also occur in more shallow, stagnant ponds and pools.

Three subspecies are traditionally recognised, of which two occur within Europe:

P. s. balcanicus - occurs throughout the mainland European range of the species.
P. s. boettgeri - within Europe, restricted to several Greek islands located off the Anatolian coastline in the southeast Aegean.

However, genetic and morphological studies in 2019 suggest that this taxon represents two distinct species, P. syriacus and P. balcanicus, and that moreover those populations of P. syriacus located in Thracian Turkey - traditionally classified within balcanicus - can be assigned to P. s. boettgeri. These studies also propose that populations within the Peloponnesus represent a previously-unrecognised subspecies, P. b. chloeae.

No photographs of this/these species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Pallas' Spadefoot Toad (Pelobates vespertinus)

Within Europe, this species is restricted to northeast and eastern Ukraine and the Crimean Peninsula; the species extends from here throughout southwest Russia, the Caucasus and into Kazakhstan. Outside the breeding season - during which time the species prefers to occupy deep, well-vegetated permanant bodies of water - the species is almost entirely nocturnal and fossorial and is largely confined to flat, open lowland areas with loose, dry soil such as heathland, dunes and steppes.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.
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PELODYTIDAE


This family comprises three species within a single genus, of which two occur in Europe as follows:

Pelodytes - Parsley Frogs (3 species, of which two are present in Europe)
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Pelodytes


Iberian Parsley Frog (Pelodytes ibericus)

This species is endemic to the southern Iberian Peninsula, from southeast and south-central Portugal into southern Extremadura and western Andalucia in Spain. Outside the breeding season, during which time it tends to occur in shallow, sunny bodies of water such as ponds, ditches, flooded agricultural land and saltmarshes, it is largely terrestrial and prefers open woodland, shrubland and cultivated land.

Monotypic.

Photo by @Mr. Zootycoon

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Common Parsley Frog (Pelodytes punctatus)

This species extends throughout much of France, and south into much of the central and eastern Iberian Peninsula and east along the French Mediterranean into coastal northwest Italy; a disjunct population occurs in western Portugal. The species is largely terrestrial and primarily occurs in areas of calcareous or sandy soil, particularly dunelands, shrubland and cultivated land, with breeding habitats tending to comprise shallow, sunny pools, ditches and temporary bodies of water.

Currently classified as monotypic; however, preliminary results from recent genetic research suggests that the taxon contains two cryptic species within the Iberian Peninsula. These occur in Portugal and in Spain respectively, with only the Catalonian populations remaining within P. punctatus.

Photo by @Merintia (Spanish population)

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BUFONIDAE


This family comprises approximately 570 species within 52 genera, of which 8 species within three genera occur within Europe as follows:

Bufo - True Toads (18 species, of which 2 occur in Europe)

Bufotes - Green Toads (15 species, of which 6 occur in Europe)

Epidalea - Natterjack Toad (monotypic)
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Bufo


Common Toad (Bufo bufo)

This species extends throughout Europe, barring the southwest, northern Scandinavia, Ireland and the majority of the Mediterranean islands; beyond Europe, the range of the species extends into Asia Minor, and throughout Russia as far east as south-central Siberia and adjacent northern Mongolia. The species is highly terrestrial outside of the breeding season, and is able to adapt to a wide variety of habitats from scrublands and sand dunes, to more humid marshes, forests and alpine meadows, and is also widespread throughout urbanised and highly-modified habitats. The species is able to breed in an equally-cosmopolitan range of habitats, but prefers deeper sunlight water such as large ponds, stagnant rivers and lakeshores.

The species is currently classified as monotypic, although several congeners - including B. spinosus - have previously been assigned to this taxon as subspecies.

Photo by @nikola

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Spiny Toad (Bufo spinosus)

This species extends throughout much of western and southern France, and into the Iberian Peninsula. As is the case with the Common Toad, this species is highly cosmopolitan in both breeding and terrestrial habitat, and can be found in more or less any suitable environment.

Photo by @Merintia

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Bufotes


Balearic Green Toad (Bufotes balearicus)

This species extends throughout much of Italy, as far south as northeast Sicily, with populations also occurring in the Balearic and Tyrrhenian Islands. The species is largely terrestrial and nocturnal, preferring to inhabit coastal lowlands, sand dunes and cultivated land, although it is highly adaptable to urban and suburban habitats. Aquatic habitats are generally only occupied during the breeding season, at which time it tends to occur in gravel and sand pits, shallow ponds and ditches.

Monotypic.

Photo by @vogelcommando

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African Green Toad (Bufotes boulengeri)

Within Europe, this species is restricted to the Italian island of Lampedusa, off the eastern coast of Tunisia; beyond here, the range of the species extends throughout North Africa and the Levant. The species is highly terrestrial and on Lampedusa tends to occur in dry maquis and garrigue shrubland, breeding opportunistically in temporary bodies of water such as ditches and puddles.

Currently classified as monotypic, although Bufotes siculus has previously been assigned to this taxon as a subspecies.

Photo by @Ituri

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Sicilian Green Toad (Bufotes siculus)

This species is endemic to Sicily, extending throughout the island west of Mount Etna. The species is largely terrestrial, occurring throughout lowland cultivated areas, coastal sand dunes and urbanised habitats, with breeding occurring in semi-permanent bodies of water such as ditches, shallow ponds and gravel pits.

Monotypic; no photographs of this species are present within the Zoochat gallery.


Variable Green Toad (Bufotes variabilis)

Within Europe, the known range of this species comprises three disjunct populations; in northern Germany and Denmark, in the Peloponnesus of southern Greece, and on Corfu - however, it is suspected that the taxon may occur much more widely throughout central and eastern Europe, patchily occurring sympatrically with Bufotes viridis. Beyond this range, the species occurs throughout Asia Minor, the Middle East and the Caucasus, extending as far east as northern Kazakhstan. The species is largely terrestrial, occurring throughout a wide range of habitats including shrubland, cultivated land, open forests and lowland steppe, with breeding habitats tending to comprise temporary, shallow water bodies such as flooded fields, stagnant rivers and ditches.

Monotypic.

Photo by @fofo

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European Green Toad (Bufotes viridis)

Within Europe, this species extends from southwest Germany and northern Austria in the west to eastern Ukraine, the Crimean Peninsula and southwest Russia in the east, and south throughout eastern Europe into the Balkans; as previously noted, the species may patchily occur sympatrically with Bufotes variabilis in the eastern portion of this range. Beyond this range, the species extends deeper into western Russia and the northern Caucasus. The species is largely terrestrial and occurs in a cosmopolitan range of habitats including forest, steppic grasslands, scrubland and alpine meadows, and also throughout modified and urbanised areas. Breeding tends to occur in an equally-cosmopolitan range of aquatic habitats, including marshland, temporary ponds and ditches, stagnant or brackish bodies of water, and upland pools and streams.

This species is currently classified as monotypic, although several congeners - including B. variabilis and B. balearicus - are sometimes classified within the taxon as subspecies. Further study of contact zones and molecular data is probably required in this matter.

Photo by @Kakapo

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